Surprise, The Walking Dead's Rick Grimes Movie Is Heading To Theaters

The Walking Dead's Rick before blowing up the bridge

AMC's The Walking Dead has grown from its humble Season 1 beginnings to become an absolutely behemoth franchise. Two shows are currently running on the network, with a third Walking Dead series on the way. Clearly the zombie apocalypse isn't slowing down anytime soon, but there has been a big question looming over the property: what's happening with Rick Grimes?

Rick Grimes was written off The Walking Dead last season, and the show moved on with a substantial time jump. But it turned out that Rick didn't perish on the bridge that day, with Jadis/Anne taking him away on her mysterious helicopter. Andrew Lincoln is off TWD, although it was revealed that he'd continue Rick's journey through a movie. And it was revealed today at San Diego Comic-Con that instead of airing on AMC, Rick Grimes' movie is getting a full theatrical release.

This news comes to us from the historical Hall H at San Diego Comic-Con, with CinemaBlend in attendance for the unexpected announcement. This venue houses the largest audience of the convention, and The Walking Dead franchise had plenty of news to share regarding its myriad projects. This includes the highly anticipated Rick Grimes movie, which is breaking new ground for the property in more ways than one.

Unfortunately, there was nothing else revealed about the upcoming zombie movie. While Andrew Lincoln will return to play his signature apocalyptic survivor, the movie's title and release date are unknown. As such, the rabid fandom will no doubt come up with plenty of theories and rumors about what might happen for the Walking Dead movie.

Related: Why Rick Grimes Absolutely Deserves A Walking Dead Spin-Off Movie

This news is sure to surprise most Walking Dead fans, as the universe has so far lived entirely on either the comic page or AMC. So when Andrew Lincoln's movie as Rick Grimes was announced with his departure, many of us expected it to be a small screen adventure. But the zombies are heading to the big screen this time, allowing Andrew Lincoln to return to theaters in a big way.

There might not have been much information about the untitled Walking Dead movie, but AMC did include a brief teaser for the project. Check it out below.

Well, that was delightfully cryptic. The teaser didn't include any footage or clues about what to expect with Rick Grimes' big movie. But the ending moments are what it's really about, revealing that the Sheriff was heading to theaters. This was the video that debuted at The Walking Dead's Comic-Con presentation, sending the audience into thunderous applause.

Andrew Lincoln's name is synonymous with his tenure as Walking Dead, but he's got a few other big screen credits on his long resume. The most notable was his role in Love, Actually. Lincoln perhaps had the most iconic scene in the movie, confessing his love through cue cards. And given the movie's Christmas setting, many moviegoers watch this sequence every Holiday Season.

CinemaBlend will keep you updated on all things The Walking Dead, including the untitled movie. Additionally, check back for updates from San Diego Comic-Con. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.